Myanmar - Ethnic groups

The Burmans, ethnically related to the Tibetans, constituted about 68%
of Myanmar's total population in 1999. In remote times, the
Burmans, migrants from the hills east of Tibet, descended the Irrawaddy
Valley and intermarried with the previously settled Mon and Pyu peoples.
Since then, however, many other migrant peoples from the northeast and
northwest have settled in Myanmar: the Shans, Karens, Kachins, Kayahs,
and Chins are among the more numerous. Although much ethnic fusion has
taken place among these peoples and the Burmans, most of the later
migrant groups remain distinct cultural entities, and have sought to
preserve their autonomy, sometimes by violent means. As of 1999, the
Shan made up about 9% of the population, the Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%,
Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, and other 5%.